September is Emergency Preparedness Month and if we’ve learned anything this year it’s that preparation is everything. National Preparedness Month is sponsored by FEMA. FEMA aims to educate and empower Americans to prepare for and respond to all types of emergencies, including natural disasters and potential attacks. Covid-19 affected our whole community in unprecedented ways. At The Little Details, we feel super lucky and grateful for our community and our commitment to helping one another. Although you cannot be prepared for everything in life, we’d like to share some of our ways to plan and stay organized in difficult times. 

During uncertain times it’s important to feel secure with what you have in your home to take care of yourself and your family. This can seem overwhelming, but there are organizing methods to help you navigate this. 

To help me stay organized for long term shopping I identify my categories. I look at produce and perishables, canned goods, paper products, hygiene and first aid supplies. We’ve also created an Emergency Shopping List here that you can use as a guide. 

Next, take stock in what you have. Don’t wait and then panic at the store. Create your list ahead of time based your needs. If you have an iPhone, I suggest using the Reminders app on your phone to create a list of what you need. This list can be shared with anyone else within your household who has an iPhone. That way anyone can contribute to the list and whoever is responsible for going shopping or placing a delivery has all of the information at hand.

During this time over-purchasing can take away supplies from someone who needs it most. I list out everything I currently have in my categories, which helps me identify and see what I may need more of in the coming month or two. I find that this exercise also shows me how much I can do with what I already have. 

Be thoughtful, not just during a shopping trip, but after as well. Keep your categories together in your pantry. Keeping your items together, visible and accessible helps you use your supplies most efficiently. You will also see what you have and how much so you don’t overbuy. 

Create an emergency contact sheet for everyone in your family to have. Keep a copy in an accessible area in your house where your kids can get to it. This should include cell phone numbers of household members, neighbors and family as well as community contact numbers such as the local police station, fire department, shelters and animal control. The nearest hospital and your doctors names and phone numbers are also very helpful to have on hand.

Something else people don’t think about during times like these are making sure you have all of your important documents in check. Have all vital documents sorted and labeled. If there are other people within your household, let them know where the vital documents are so they can access them if need be. Certain things such as social security cards, birth certificates, passports and estate information are all crucial to have at your fingertips. Some of our clients prefer to have these important files separate from the rest of their files referring to them as “Hot Files.” These hot files are usually in a transportable file box like this so that if there is an emergency you can grab and go with what’s most important.

There are a ton of emergency preparedness lists online and we’ve created one for you to use as well. You can also read our previous blog post “10 Ways To Be Prepared For Emergency Preparedness Month” for a plethora of tips. Lastly, this is a perfect time to reflect and journal. Keep notes (even on your phone) of your observations and your experiences. It will help you prepare better, and help you help others.